KUALA LUMPUR, May 10 (Xinhua) -- Malaysian Central Bank maintained its interest rate at 3.25 percent as expected Thursday, emphasizing that the country's monetary and financial conditions are supportive of economic growth in the post-election environment.
The bank said in a statement, it decided to maintain the Overnight Policy Rate (OPR) at its Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting, signaling the degree of monetary accommodativeness is consistent with the policy stance to ensure that the domestic economy continues on a steady growth path amid lower inflation.
"Headline inflation is expected to remain moderate for the year as a whole on expectations of a smaller effect from global cost factors," it said, adding a stronger ringgit exchange rate compared to 2017 will mitigate import costs.
Underlying inflation, as measured by core inflation, is projected to remain moderate amid stable demand conditions, said the bank.
The central bank also expects the positive economic growth momentum to be sustained, driven by the strength in both domestic and external demand.
"Overall, the prospects for the Malaysian economy remain strong," it said.
According to the bank, private consumption will be supported by favorable income and labor market conditions; investment activity is projected to be sustained by implementation of ongoing infrastructure projects and capacity expansion by firms.
On the external front, exports are expected to continue benefiting from the positive momentum in global growth and trade in advanced and regional economies.
"Despite financial market volatility due to external developments, domestic financial markets have remained resilient. Malaysia's economic fundamentals are strongly anchored," it said.
It also said, global growth prospects remain balanced although there are risks should trade and geopolitical tensions worsen.
